English Literature and Language

The issue of how research skills are developed before one finishes a postgraduate degree, and how doctoral students acquire practical knowledge of doing research, may also pose philosophical speculations about how knowledge is achieved. Even recognizing the oversimplification, it could be said that such understanding comes from two different traditions: the one that sees knowledge … More Researcher development (Part 2)

My son has just passed his Viva with minor revisions and I am now the happy and proud mother of Dr Eduardo Lima. However, the amount of preparation and the stress generated by going through the process cannot be underestimated as one tries to predict what questions the panel may ask and the best way … More Researcher development (Part 1)

In the preface of the First Folio, Ben Jonson, who was Shakespeare’s rival poet and dramatist, wrote arguably the most famous eulogy to his late friend: ‘Soul of the age! The applause, delight, the wonder of our stage (…) He was not of an age but for all time!’ An elevating discourse on Shakespeare in … More For all time

The recent political developments in the UK, the USA, Syria, North Korea, and around the world in general made me think of Macbeth and the imagery of the body. Body parts seem to form an important image cluster in Macbeth. Although it pales compared to Titus Andronicus in the gory category, it still has its … More ‘Eye of newt and toe of frog’

My IATEFL report will once again focus on the presentations that where part of the Literature SIG conference programme. The pre-conference event (PCE) was a joint event with the Creativity Group and I would also like to express my gratitude to Alan Maley for the support and for helping promote the event. This year the … More IATEFL Glasgow 2017